Submissions are invited for Create in India Challenge Season 1: Comics Creator Championship by WAVES. The last date of submission is October 31, 2024.

About WAVES

India is positioned to become a prominent hub for high-quality, cost-effective content development. Our country has a lot of talent, ranging from compelling actors and directors to competent technicians and animation professionals. World-class pre and post-production facilities, together with our back-office operational competence and solid networking infrastructure, form a formidable ecosystem that will catapult the India’s Media & Entertainment (M&E) sector to the world stage.

World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit, known by the acronym WAVES, will be a key forum for promoting discussions, collaboration, and innovation in the M&E industry. The event will bring together industry leaders, stakeholders, and innovators to discuss prospects, challenges, promote trade to India, and influence the sector’s future.

Championship Details

The Comic Creator Championship, one of the 25 competitions hosted under the WAVES summit, promises to be a game-changer for India’s comic book industry. The competition will unfold across three stages and feature two categories—Amateur and Professional—providing a unique platform for emerging and established creators to showcase their talents on a global scale. 

In a landmark move, the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B) has joined forces with the Indian Comics Association (ICA) to spearhead the first-ever Comic Creator Championship, a centerpiece event at the upcoming World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (WAVES). This collaboration marks the first significant partnership among Indian comic book publishers in over three decades, setting the stage for a new era in India’s creative industry.

Participants will progress through three phases of the Comics Creator Championship, each with its own unique challenges and requirements. While the themes are diverse, participants must ensure that the context and setting of their story are inherently Indian, reflecting an Indian perspective and sensibilities. Stories can be created in either Hindi or English, and no preferential treatment will be given to either language during judging, ensuring a level playing field for all participants.

Categories

  • Amateur: Participants who have never published a comic (either self or through a third party) in digital or physical format. A few comic strips or pages (but not long series) posted on personal social media for hobby purposes are not counted as professional work unless a substantial reader base follows them. Also, an amateur participant could be someone who is not making a living or income from creating art or comics.
  • Professional: Participants who have at least one or more comic-related works published in digital or physical format through any means. Suppose an artist works on commission for others or has a substantial fan following on social channels due to his art; then, in that case, such an artist will also fall in the professional category. Also, a professional participant could be someone who is making a living or income from creating art or comics.

Prizes

Professional Category

  • Top 5 entries will be published in a comic anthology by WAVES.
  • Each winning participant/team will receive: Cash prize of Rs. 1,00,000.

Amateur Category

  • Top 5 entries will be published in a comic anthology by WAVES.
  • Each winning participant/team will receive: Cash prize of Rs. 60,000.

Additional Prizes

  • Top 100 participants selected for Phase 2 will receive a Digital Certificate of Appreciation.
  • Top 25 participants selected for Phase 3 will receive a Goodie Bag.

How to Submit?

Interested participants can submit online via this link.

Submission Deadline

The last deadline of submission is October 31, 2024.

Contact

Email: comicscreatorchampionship[at]gmail[dot]com

Click here to view the official notification of Create in India Challenge Season 1: Comics Creator Championship by WAVES.